After parting ways with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), actor-turned-politician Vijayshanthi, accused the party of falling under the influence of Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR). She questioned why the BJP, which accused KCR of corruption, has not taken any action against him. She also alleged that KCR manipulated Congress MLAs to join his party.
Addressing a press conference on Saturday, November 18, Vijayashanthi expressed her reasons for leaving the BJP. Criticising the saffron party for its failure to address internal issues, she expressed confidence in the ability of the Congress to come to power.
Vijayashanthi expressed her disappointment over the removal of Bandi Sanjay as the state unit president of the BJP a few months before the elections. “There was good understanding between the party cadre and Bandi Sanjay. I told the high command not to remove Bandi Sanjay but they dug their own pit. The party graph has gone down.” she said.
She also insinuated that Eatala Rajender was planted by KCR in the BJP, without naming the leader. “The party was disrupted after one leader joined. He influenced the removal of Bandi Sanjay from his post,” she said. Vijayashanthi also questioned BJP's silence on the Kaleshwaram project and the lack of action from the Union Government.
Eatala Rajender, a former BRS MLA from Huzurabad had faced corruption allegations in 2021 which ultimately led to his departure from the party. He then joined BJP and is considered the potential CM face of the party.
Vijayashanthi said the BJP deviated from the principles of dignity in politics and that the party’s approach towards her was not acceptable.
She has been appointed as the chief coordinator of the campaign and planning committee for Telangana day after she joined the Congress. The announcement was made during her official induction into the Congress in the presence of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday, November 17.